Monday, May 9, 2011

Hudson & Judson: "Who's On First?" (1978)

I got this one in October of 2004, not knowing if this one was going to be any good or not. Despite the cheap-looking cover graphics, this is a vast improvement over The Hollyweird Squares. I don't know who Dave Judson is, or how he came to team up with the Emperor, but he sort of sounds a little like Ron Landry, so it's almost like having H&L together again.

Bob Hudson wrote all of the material on this one, save for the opening title cut, based around the classic Abbott & Costello routine "Who's On First?". Next is a sports interview with none other than Bruiser LaRue, who's going to trade in his cleats to be a baseball star. Following that is "Take The Gum", where Judson is a guy on the subway being pestered by a well-meaning but annoying guy whose lot in life is chewing-gum. After that is a similar routine, "Hold The Mustard", about two guys at a ballgame, where one guy doesn't want mustard on his dog, and gets read the riot act by the other about the evils of not eating mustard. He changes his tune, though, when he finds out what's in mustard!

Side two opens with "The Pits", featuring Hudson's famous drunk, who's a few sails into the wind at the local watering hole, full of hilarious (to him, anyway) guessing games and tales of riding the bus while drunk (check it out at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v+vPL4SvG-YiI)"Wagons Ho!" is a tale of the old West, and of how the most famous town in Arizona got its name. "Death Penalty" is a TV interview show parody, where a senator who's ready to throw the switch on condemened criminals may just be in hot water himself. The final cut, "Sweet Street", is kind of a sequel to "The Chocolate Freak" by H&L, featuring the same jokey candy references, only this time, the suspect goes in front of the Fudge Judge at the end.

This was the only album released by Hudson & Judson, on the Cream label in 1978. After this, Hudson returned to radio, where he remained on various stations and citites up until his retirement in 1988.